


sleeping beauty

by cuddlyseho



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Domestic Fluff, First Dates, Fluff, Light Angst, M/M, Strangers to Lovers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-31
Updated: 2021-01-31
Packaged: 2021-03-10 20:13:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,078
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28432977
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cuddlyseho/pseuds/cuddlyseho
Summary: Since when were firemen all so pretty?
Relationships: Kim Junmyeon | Suho/Oh Sehun
Comments: 18
Kudos: 75
Collections: Starry Suho Fest (R1)





	sleeping beauty

**Author's Note:**

> Prompt #S168: Junmyeon fell in love with the fireman that saved his puppy.

The first thing Junmyeon realizes when he wakes up is that he isn’t in his bed. Normally this wouldn’t be an issue; he’s been known to fall out of bed before. This time, however, Junmyeon realizes he isn’t even in his apartment anymore.

He stares down at his hands dangling below his head and notices the thick pair of boots that are taking him down his apartment building’s stairs. Everything snaps into focus then: the pressure against his stomach, the arm wrapped around his back – is he being kidnapped?! Heart beating a mile a minute, he frantically wracks his brain to figure out what to do.

Who would even want to kidnap a random kindergarten teacher? Wait, not important.

In the midst of his panic, his kidnapper’s managed to get him outside. Right when Junmyeon is about to scream for help his attacker speaks, the words coming out in sharp pants: “I’ve got another one, slept through the alarm. Can you believe that?”

Wait. Alarm? Confused, Junmyeon finally looks around and notices the line of emergency vehicles on his street. All the tension that had been building in him suddenly releases. No kidnapper, just a fireman.

Junmyeon tentatively pokes the back of his mystery savior, wanting to be let down from this rather uncomfortable position. The man startles but manages to maintain his grip. “Just a second sleeping beauty I’ve almost got you to an ambulance.” Too tired to object, Junmyeon resigns himself to a few more moments of discomfort.

“Hey hyung, got another one for you. No injuries that I could see but he was asleep when I found him so check for smoke inhalation and the works.” As the fireman says this Junmyeon feels his body lurch upwards as he’s finally lifted off the man’s shoulder and set down onto the bench. Adjusting to the sudden light from within the cab he looks up to get a view of who’d just carried him down the three flights of stairs.

His breath catches in his throat when he finally sees the man’s face. Even with his hair sticking to his temples and soot on his face this man is quite possibly the most attractive person Junmyeon has ever seen in his life.

Without really meaning to Junmyeon blurts out, “You’re hot.” The man’s eyes widen and his mouth twitches as if holding off a smile. “I get that a lot,” he says with a wink. Cheeks flaming, Junmyeon can’t bear to meet his eyes anymore. The fireman’s lips quirk into a small smirk before his face returns to its previous seriousness.

“Before I leave you here with Chanyeol I need to ask, was there anyone else in your apartment?”

All of the air leaves his lungs. _Byul._ Suddenly panicked, he gasps which triggers a horrible coughing fit. The fireman’s hands come up to support his shoulders as he struggles for breath and Junmyeon grips his forearms ensuring he won’t leave without knowing about his dog, his baby, still trapped inside.

“Byul”, he manages to squeak out between his hacking, “my dog.” Immediately the fireman springs into action, gently settling Junmyeon into his colleague’s hands and rushing off in the direction of the burning building.

Now a new face comes to hover in his vision. Big eyes, a bigger smile, and even big goofy ears come into focus. Since when were firemen all so pretty?

“Hi there!”, a deep yet warm voice says, “My name is Chanyeol. You seem to be doing okay, but that coughing is a little intense so could I check you out a bit?”

“But Byul-“

“Sehun over there is one of the best we have. I promise Byul will be fine”, he squeezes to Junmyeon’s shoulder, “right now we need to focus on you and the source of that cough.” Nodding, Junmyeon lets himself be resettled so he can sit on his own.

The check up takes minutes, maybe longer, but Junmyeon can hardly focus on what’s happening, his mind still panicked and heart in his throat at the thought of Byul being in that building.

“Okay that should do it,” the EMT, Chanyeol?, says good-naturedly as he leans over Junmyeon to reach the oxygen masks, “I’m going to need you to put this on as you’ve got a mild case of smoke inhalation. We’ve got to get your oxygen levels back up.”

Junmyeon lets the mask be placed on his face and the strap pulled behind his head, his gaze still fixed on the entrance to his building. Every second feels like an hour as he waits, heart pounding and fists clenched, desperate to see his baby come out those doors.

“Hey,” a soft voice says, “it’s gonna be okay. Deep breaths, they’ll be out of there before you know it.” A large hand takes his and gently rolls it out of the fist and gives it a gentle squeeze. “In and out nice and slow”. Junmyeon tries to focus on the soothing voice and get his breathing back in control but the longer it takes, the harder that seems to get.

Suddenly there’s a loud bang as the beautiful fireman, _Sehun,_ comes crashing out of the apartment complex with a small bundle in his arms. Junmyeon holds his breath as he squints to see whether that bundle contains his precious girl. A scruffy ear, then a head pops out from behind a fold of the blanket and air finally returns to his lungs. Tears begin collecting in his eyes as the man approaches and Byul comes into better focus.

“ _Byul_ ”, he sobs out, reaching a weak arm up towards their approaching figures. Byul’s ears twitch forward and her gaze snaps to him. Wriggling in the fireman’s arms she lets out a little yip in greeting and the tears spill over onto his face. _She’s okay_.

Without the anxiety keeping him awake, his body seems to remember it was in deep sleep before the current events and despite his best effort, his limbs go lax and his heavy eyelids begin to close, drifting off into slumber once again. The last thing he registers is a familiar weight being placed on his chest and a small wet nose brushing against his neck.

\---------------------------------------

When Junmyeon wakes again, it takes him less time to figure out his surroundings. He takes in the crisp white sheets covering him, the florescent lights coming in from the hall, the curtain surrounding his bed. It screams hospital.

As the events of the fire return to him, he begins to panic again. What if he’d imagined Byul coming out of the building? Was she really safe? Where is she now?

He tries to lift himself up to get the attention of someone, but the fatigue has yet to leave his body and he slumps back down onto the pillow. Tears form in his eyes as a feeling of helplessness begins to take over him.

He turns his head to the side and notices a small square of yellow paper with some writing on it. His heart skips a beat, and he strains his eyes to make out the words: _Your dog is okay. Had to leave her at the station, not allowed in hospitals. With Chanyeol._ He sighs in relief. It wasn’t a dream; she really was okay.

His gaze moves past the note to notice someone asleep in the chair next to his bed. He quickly realizes it was the firefighter that saved him and Byul last night. The man was folded almost comically on the small chair, his long limbs and broad shoulders contorting strangely to be able to fit in such a small place.

Not wanting to wake him, the man was clearly exhausted, Junmyeon settles in to take a nice long look at who he thinks could be his guardian angel. Black hair sticking up in every direction and streaks of soot lingering on the man’s face makes it clear that he hadn’t gone home and showered since the fire. Junmyeon’s heartrate picks up at the thought of the man watching over him all this time. He quickly shoves those thoughts away, why would he have done that?

Not knowing if he’ll ever get to see him again, Junmyeon drinks in all of the features of the man’s face: bold eyebrows and a prominent straight nose, pink lips slightly parted in sleep, a sharp jawline, he truly was beautiful. Junmyeon’s eyes travel down his body noticing that the bulky jacket he’d had on before was draped over the back of the chair leaving him in his SFD t-shirt. His eyes greedily take in the sight of muscled arms and a broad chest; he wouldn’t mind being in those arms again. That thought makes him feel a little guilty, checking out a sleeping man but hey, he’s had a hard day. He deserves this.

His reverie was broken by a nurse ripping the curtain open and exclaiming, “Ah! Our sleeping beauty is awake I see!” To say Junmyeon was startled wouldn’t even compare to the sleeping man who jerks so badly he slams his elbow into the bedside table. He lets out a stream of curses under his breath until he seems to realize where he is, and his jaw shuts with an audible click.

Junmyeon pouts, knowing that now any ogling of the man wouldn’t go unnoticed. Pushing down his disappointment he turns his head to the nurse, a man with amused eyes and a dimpled smile. He was checking the machines surrounding Junmyeon’s bed and cheerfully chattering along:

“You were asleep when you came in, so I’ll introduce myself. I’m Yixing and I’m your nurse this morning. We’ve had you under observation just to make sure there are no further complications with your smoke inhalation. Your EMT personnel cleared you of the majority of symptoms but we’d rather be safe than sorry. You’ll need to stick around for another couple of hours but if nothing else pops up you should be free to go! If you need anything just press this button here and I or one of my colleagues will be with you shortly. You’re welcome to help yourself to food and water, there’s a cafeteria on the first floor if you get hungry. All I ask is that you stay in bed as much as possible so that you don’t put too much strain on yourself. All right everything looks good here I’ll be back in a bit to take you through the discharge process!”

Blinking rapidly at the sudden onslaught of information, Junmyeon nods and stutters out his thanks and the nurse makes a quick exit closing the curtain once again. After a moment’s silence he remembers the other man’s presence and whips his head around to ensure he’s still there. When their eyes meet the other gives him a small smile and sticks out his hand.

“Hi, I’m Sehun. I’m not sure if you’d remember me but I’m the one that-“

“You saved us!” Junmyeon clutches his hand in both of his without thinking.

Sehun halts with his mouth slightly open before it melts into a bashful smile “yeah, I guess I did.” He chuckles lightly as he scratches the back of his head with his unoccupied hand.

Coming back to himself, Junmyeon drops the hand he’d been clutching, feeling himself flush, and turns his eyes away to look at anything other than Sehun.

“Thank you, you know, for saving me. And my dog. And for the note. And for saving me. I said that already.”

Blessedly, Sehun cut him off there by taking his hand and giving it a light squeeze. “You’re welcome. I mean it’s kind of my job, but still.”

Junmyeon lets out a little huff at that and finally brings himself to meet Sehun’s eyes once again. He gets lost in them for a while, the way the sunlight hits them and makes them shine, the hint of playfulness he can see beyond the concern. He’s not sure how much time has passed when the sound of a cellphone going off breaks his trance.

Sehun gives him a small smile and pulls his hand away to fish out his phone from his pocket. His smile grows as he reads what Junmyeon assumes is a message from someone. He tries to ignore the little flash of jealousy at that smile not being directed at him. How ridiculous, he has no right to be jealous but oh how he’d love to be the recipient of such a smile.

“Do you want to see a picture of Byul that Chanyeol just sent me?” Junmyeon barely stops himself from snatching Sehun’s phone right out of his hand as it’s handed to him. The photo is just about the cutest thing he’s ever seen. Byul is in Chanyeol’s arms, her head cocked to the side and her mouth hanging open in a lazy grin. Chanyeol is absolutely beaming, a dimple revealing itself on his cheek.

“He loves dogs.” Junmyeon jumps at the voice coming from as of now, directly next to his ear rather than a few feet away.

Willing his heart to stop beating out of his chest he turns his head to look at Sehun who’s leaned over into Junmyeon’s space in order to look at the picture as well. When he catches Junmyeon staring his eyes turn into crescents as he smiles at Junmyeon with the force of a thousand suns. Helpless to such brightness, Junmyeon feels his own smile grow on his face. Reluctantly he hands Sehun his phone back, “Thank you for showing me” he says shyly.

Sadly, Sehun seems to take this as a cue to move away, standing and reaching for his jacket. The sight brings a pout to Junmyeon’s face, “oh? Are you leaving? I guess that would make sense, I mean I’m sure you’re busy, lot’s of people to save and-“

“Do you want me to stay?”

He looks up at Sehun who seems almost, dare he say it, hopeful. Blushing, Junmyeon gives a small nod of his head and watches as another smile spreads across Sehun’s face once again. He isn’t sure he can survive if Sehun keeps bringing those out.

“You should know though,” he hears Sehun say as he sits down, “I don’t typically do this.”

Junmyeon cursed the machines he was attached to as they started beeping faster at those words. “O-oh? Then why…”

“Because you’re beautiful,” Sehun says looking straight into his eyes, smiling, but eyes sincere.

Junmyeon feels almost dizzy as all of the blood in his body rushes to his face. He brings his hands up to hide as he calms himself. At this rate he’ll never be able to leave this hospital bed due to these heart fluctuations.

Once he feels like his face no longer resembles a tomato, he removes his hands and peeks over at Sehun who’s watching him with a bemused smile.

Junmyeon, wanting desperately to move on from his embarrassment, decides if Sehun is going to stick around he might as well try to get to know the man.

“So, um, if you don’t mind staying, maybe we could get to know each other?”

Sehun beams, “I’d love that.” He chuckled, “Maybe we could start with your name?”

For the nth time that day Junmyeon wishes the ground would just swallow him whole. How could he have gone this long without telling Sehun his name?! “I’m Junmyeon!” he says maybe a bit too excitedly, “Kim Junmyeon.”

“A pretty name for a pretty man” Sehun replies with a wink. Blushing again, or maybe he’d never stopped, Junmyeon whines, “oh _stop,_ ” causing Sehun to laugh an adorably high-pitched laugh. “Okay, okay I’m sorry. Your blush is just too cute I can’t resist.”

Resisting the urge to reach out and swat Sehun’s arm, Junmyeon pushes on, “So anyways, why did you decide to become a firefighter?”

The hours felt like minutes as they talk, Yixing returning in the midst of a dramatic retelling of the time Chanyeol got himself stuck in a tree while trying to help a cat get _un_ stuck.

“Well I guess that’s why we never got any pages from you, seems like the two of you have been having some fun,” the nurse says with a laugh, “your levels look good so I’m going to go get you the discharge papers. I’ll be right back.” A swish of the curtain and the nurse is gone again.

“You know,” Sehun says slowly, “if you wanted, I could drive you over to the station to pick up Byul and then give you a lift home. We managed to keep the damage sequestered to just the top 3 floors of the building and there was no structural damage so your apartment is still completely fine, just a little dusty.”

Junmyeon perks up at the thought of finally being able to go home and cuddle with his precious Byul. “That would be great!” he exclaims, “thank you.”

The discharge process and drive to the station go smoothly and, in Junmyeon’s opinion, a bit too fast. Although he can pat himself on the back for only getting distracted by the sight of Sehun driving three times. Each time resulted in some light teasing from Sehun, but thankfully Junmyeon is beginning to build up a resistance to his cheekiness.

Upon entering the station, Junmyeon has to take back what he said about the picture Chanyeol sent being the cutest thing he’s ever seen; the sight in person definitely beat that out for the Cutest Sight Ever. Chanyeol is flopped onto his side engaged in what seemed to be a fierce battle of tug-of-war with Byul.

Unable to contain himself, he rushes forward toward his dog yelling “Byullie!”

Immediately upon hearing him, Byul turns and sprints towards him jumping up into his outstretched arms. Junmyeon collects her against his chest and begins pressing endless kisses into her fur.

Off to the side Junmyeon can hear Chanyeol teasing Sehun, “I was surprised you didn’t come back right away from checking on him in the hospital.” To which Sehun smacks him and hisses “Shut up! I told you I wanted to make sure he knew his dog was okay!” Chanyeol’s eyes nearly roll out of his head as he drawls “Oh sure Sehunnie I’m sure that was the _only_ rea- oof!” And that was Sehun’s elbow connecting with his stomach.

While Chanyeol is doubled over catching his breath Sehun rushes over to Junmyeon, taking his arm and directing him towards the exit, “Let’s get you home, yeah?”

Bewildered, Junmyeon breathlessly turns to Chanyeol who’s now standing rubbing his stomach with a pout on his face and says, “Thank you for watching Byul! It was nice to meet- you”, the last part of his sentence cut off by the closing of the door behind them.

He’s quickly ushered into Sehun’s car, his seatbelt even buckled by Sehun himself. It isn’t until Sehun comes around the car to sit in his own seat and slump to put his forehead onto the steering wheel that he seems to be able to catch his breath.

“I just made a complete fool of myself, didn’t I?”

At that mumbled statement Junmyeon feels an almost overwhelming amount of affection for the man sitting next to him. _Cute._ Finally, Junmyeon can be on the opposite side of the teasing, “Only a little” he says with a grin. Sehun looks over at him and sighs, smiling back “Let’s get you guys home now.”

\---------------------------------------

A month. It’s been a month since the fire in his building which had ended up being the fault of some teenagers trying to cook for their mom. Nice thought, poor execution. Even worse execution was Junmyeon trying to get Sehun’s number. The entire experience of the fire, then the hospital, had been such a whirlwind that by the time he realized he’d forgotten to ask, Sehun had already been gone for 10 minutes.

It’s been a month of berating himself for being so stupid and socially inept. A month of thinking about a set of strong arms paired with kind hands, of a sweet high laugh, a crescent-eyed smile, and a teasing voice. For an entire _month_ Junmyeon’s thoughts have been consumed by Sehun to the point where his students have had to poke his cheeks to get his attention.

He feels silly to be that distracted by a man he had only known for a matter of hours. Sehun has probably already forgotten his existence by now. There’s no way he’s filling Sehun’s mind the way Sehun is filling his.

He’s currently ushering his students out to the yard for some assembly or demonstration. He really should know what it’s for, it was in an email, but then again, Sehun. His two chatterboxes Jongdae and Baekhyun are skipping along in front of him yelling about a cartoon that must have aired the previous night, and his sweet Kyungsoo is walking along next to him holding his hand. He smiles down at him as he opens the door to the yard, giving his small hand a soft squeeze.

When he looks up, he can’t believe his eyes. There’s no way. It must be his mind finally becoming completely overwhelmed by thoughts of Sehun that now he’s even hallucinating about him standing in the middle of the schoolyard.

“Teacher Jun?” he hears a small voice say. He turns back to see Kyungsoo looking up at him in confusion. It was then that he realizes he had stopped walking and just stood in place with his mouth hanging open like an idiot staring at the man he thought he’d never see again. He shakes himself and resumes walking towards his group’s assigned spot, smiling fondly at Kyungsoo who has run ahead to sit between Baekhyun and Jongdae.

He takes a quick head count and once everyone is accounted for, he lets himself look back over to where Sehun had been. His eyes meet Sehun’s and he sees one of his favorite smiles on the man’s face.

Sehun takes a step in his direction but is interrupted by the head teacher, Minseok, starting the assembly introducing the firefighters (Sehun, Chanyeol, and their ridiculously attractive coworker Jongin) and explaining that they are here to teach the children about fire safety. Each class can choose the firefighter they want to teach them, and Junmyeon feels only slightly betrayed when Baekhyun and Jongdae insist on being taught by “the man with the funny ears”. Sehun smiles at him before walking over to Minseok’s group, though, so maybe all isn’t lost.

His attention is soon occupied by Chanyeol’s enthusiastic reenactment of the proper way to Stop, Drop, and Roll which sparks the shrieking laughter of all his students. As they “practice” the steps, Chanyeol comes up to him with a rather mischievous smile on his face.

“I had wondered why Sehun was so adamant about coming to this, usually he doesn’t really care. He heard the school name and refused to be left behind,” his tone turns to a teasing one, “I guess now I see why.”

What was it with firefighters and making him blush? Thankfully at that moment Jongdae demanded the attention of “Mr. Fire” so Junmyeon is left with a moment to collect himself.

He peeks over at Sehun’s group and thinks his heart might burst at what he sees. Sehun is walking around with a kid hanging off each arm and one wrapped around his leg in what Junmyeon assumes is a demonstration of a firefighter’s strength. On the one hand, it’s _adorable_ how much fun they seem to be having, Sehun included. On the other hand, wow that is _hot_. Junmyeon could pick up one kid with relative ease but two? Just how strong is Sehun? And how could he use that strength in other wa- nope. No.

Junmyeon shoves those thoughts away to a place they’ll never be found again. He’s at _work_ for goodness sake. He quickly pivots his focus back to his own students who seem to have followed the example of the other class and are now using Chanyeol as a personal jungle gym.

By the time the assembly is over, it’s nap time and luckily everyone goes down easily, even Jongdae who typically insists he doesn’t need a nap. Once he confirms all of his kids are asleep, he rushes back out to the yard, hoping he isn’t too late to catch Sehun. He bursts out the doors and sighs in relief when he sees the truck still parked on the road.

He watches as Sehun jumps down from where he’d been sitting in the passenger seat. Had he been waiting for him? His heartrate picks up as Sehun approaches him. This is it; he has to do it now.

“Hey there sleeping beauty. I guess I remembered the name of the school correctly,” Sehun greets with a grin.

Smiling, Junmyeon answers “I guess you did.” and then remembering (finally) his goal he reaches into his pocket and pulls out his phone. Sehun’s eyes follow his hand’s movement and they light up when he sees the phone.

“Are you finally letting me give you my number?” he teases.

“Well actually I was going to ask you to dinner to properly thank you for last time, but if my number is all you want then…”

“No, no! Dinner sounds great,” Sehun interrupts. Junmyeon feels like he’s brimming with happiness. Sehun must want this too.

“Well, I’ve got to get back to check on the kids,” he holds his phone out to Sehun, smiling, “so give me your number and I’ll text you about the details later.”

Not needing any more prompting, Sehun takes the phone and types in his details, and then wishes Junmyeon a good rest of his day and drives off with a smile.

“If you and the firefighter are done mooning at each other now,” Minseok’s sudden voice from behind him jolts Junmyeon out of his reverie, “I’d love some help getting the snacks ready.”

Sheepishly, Junmyeon heads back inside but not without looking back one last time to where the truck had been parked with a small smile on his face. He can’t wait for dinner.

\---------------------------------------

The following day at approximately 5 in the afternoon Junmyeon is having a crisis. He’d gotten back from the kindergarten two hours ago and within that time he’d completely emptied his closet in the search of the perfect outfit to wear.

He and Sehun had decided on a casual restaurant since he’d be picking Sehun up at the station after his shift ended around 6 and Sehun didn’t have any nicer clothes with him. But how casual was casual? He doesn’t want to look sloppy, but also doesn’t want to look like he’s trying too hard. Nothing feels right when he holds up different options in the mirror.

Usually, he prides himself on being fairly fashionable, but for some reason when he’s dressing to see Sehun all sense of fashion vacates his brain. Very helpful. He’s tempted to text Minseok for advice, but he’d already talked the poor guy’s ear off about his date tonight all day long. He’d been put through enough. But, seeming to sense his distress like the best friend he is, Junmyeon gets a text from him. He scoffs at the words

_If I know you at all you’re still stressing about what to wear. That one light blue sweater makes your skin look nice. I’m sure you can figure something out around that._

He rolls his eyes fondly at Minseok’s tone and spots said sweater slung across the arm of his chair. He grabs it and the pair of black jeans that make his ass look the nicest and holds them up in front of the mirror. Huh. This could work _._ He sends off a thanks to Minseok and gets a string of vaguely suggestive emojis in return. Typical. He gets changed and fixes his hair and then checks the time. 5:15. What is he supposed to do now? With the current traffic he’d get to the station at least 10 minutes early.

He flops down onto the couch next to Byul, ripping her out of slumber much to her seeming displeasure if the look she sends him means what he thinks it does. He runs a placating hand up and down her back as he contemplates his options.

Option 1: stick around here for 10 more minutes and stress himself out to the point where he’d be a nervous wreck during dinner. Option 2: head over early and, maybe if Sehun is done early, get to go to dinner even sooner. He turns to look at Byul, “What do you think Byullie, one or two?” She tilts her head cutely the way she always does when Junmyeon speaks to her and then gives his hand two distinct licks.

Junmyeon laughs and scoops her up to give her some kisses before setting her back down and getting up to grab his keys and wallet. Early is always better than potentially late, right? With one last check in the mirror, he heads out the door.

It’s quiet when he enters the station, the lobby devoid of people, or at least it appeared to be at first glance. Chanyeol nearly takes a year off of his life when his head suddenly pops up from below the desk and he yells, “Junmyeon! You’re early!”

Junmyeon shifts back and forth on his feet, maybe coming early wasn’t the way to go? But before he could work himself up Chanyeol comes around and slings an arm over his shoulders saying, “Come on I’ll give you a tour of the station while you wait for Sehun.” Not seeming to have much of a choice, Junmyeon laughs and let’s Chanyeol lead him down a hallway.

Chanyeol shows him the gym, the garage – there _is_ a pole! – and the storage closets for all of the gear they have to load on the trucks. His hands move animatedly as he explains how at the beginning of every shift, they have to take inventory, check the quality of the hoses, load things onto their trucks, etc. He then leads him up the stairs where he says the showers, bunks, and the kitchen are.

They walk together down the hall towards the kitchen which Chanyeol seems to be most excited about. Before they reach it, though Junmyeon chances a glance into a room that they pass. It seems to be the changing room outside the showers.

He nearly trips and falls flat on his face when Sehun suddenly walks out of the showers, a towel slung around his waist and water still dripping from his hair down his torso. The words Chanyeol is speaking to him fade to the background as Junmyeon gapes at the Greek god of a man he’s about to have dinner with.

Chanyeol suddenly asking “Junmyeon?” brings him out of his trance just as Sehun walks out of sight into a cubicle. “What are you doing over- _oh_ I see,” he says with a smirk spreading across his face as he reaches where Junmyeon had been rooted in the spot. “Sneak peek of what’s to come perhaps?” Without thinking, Junmyeon backhands his chest and continues to walk briskly towards the kitchen trying desperately to tamp down the blushing of his cheeks at Chanyeol’s words.

When he realizes what he’s done he stops and turns to apologize only to see Chanyeol shaking in silent laughter. With a huff he turns and continues to the kitchen and sits petulantly with his arms folded across his chest on one of the kitchen stools.

Chanyeol meanders in wiping tears from his eyes and says, “Wow Sehun wasn’t kidding when he said you were fun to tease.” Junmyeon opens his mouth to protest, but honestly, what was the point. Instead, he asks Chanyeol about the functionality of the kitchen, how meals work. Thankfully, that successfully puts Chanyeol’s focus elsewhere.

After a few minutes, Sehun strolls into the room looking as handsome as ever in a white t-shirt and denim jacket. He turns to Junmyeon and asks, “You ready to go?”

Before Junmyeon can respond, Chanyeol interjects and says, “Oh yeah I think he’s been ready for a while. You know, it’s funny Sehun I was showing him around like you asked but he got a little distrac- OW, Junmyeon!” Having known where Chanyeol was headed, Junmyeon had grabbed the closest thing – an apple – and chucked it at Chanyeol’s chest in a desperate attempt to get him to shut up about his inappropriate ogling of his date earlier.

Not wanting to give him a chance to recover, he grabs Sehun’s hand and drags him out of the kitchen, down the hall, down the stairs, and out the door of the station. He glances up at Sehun who’s looking at him with curious eyes and says, “please don’t ask.”

Sehun laughs and swings their still joined hands between them, “Lead the way,” he says. Hand-in-hand they walk to a nearby barbecue place, Sehun’s steps seeming to get bouncier the closer they get to their destination. “I only get to come here when someone at the station gets a promotion or the captain is feeling generous,” he explains, “their food is delicious, trust me.”

The mouthwatering scent that floods Junmyeon’s senses when they enter is enough for him to believe those words. Sehun is almost immediately accosted by the shop owner, scolding him for not coming by more often. He motions for Junmyeon to go find a seat, so Junmyeon lets go of his hand and heads towards a table in the back corner.

He settles into his seat and watches Sehun sweet-talk the owner, her wrinkled smile growing when he gestures back towards Junmyeon. She reaches up and pats his cheek fondly and then they’re separating, she heads back to the kitchen and Sehun turns and walks back towards the table. He sits across from Junmyeon with a smile on his face.

The owner exits the kitchen shortly, carrying out side-dishes which she sets on the table. When asked what they’d like to order, Junmyeon answers beef which has Sehun’s face opening in shock and barely concealed excitement. The owner walks away and Sehun immediately grabs Junmyeon’s hand from across the table and says with a crease in his brow, “You don’t have to do that, I’m fine with just chicken or something.”

Heart fluttering at the contact, Junmyeon smiles and reassures him, “I want to. I may not make a fortune as a teacher, but I can afford a meal like this for a date.”

The corners of Sehun’s lips quirk upwards and he says, “A date, huh?”

The world nearly comes crashing down around Junmyeon. He pulls his hand out from under Sehun’s and stutters out, “I- I mean only a date if you- if you want it to be. I’m sorry. I didn’t- I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable, or-“

“Junmyeon,” Sehun says, taking his hand again, “I’d love it if this was a date.”

Letting out a breath and slumping slightly in his chair, Junmyeon pouts at the man across from him and says, “You didn’t have to do that then. I thought I’d just ruined everything!”

Chuckling, Sehun rubs his thumb along the back of Junmyeon’s hand, “I’m sorry, I’m sorry. I was just teasing. I didn’t think you’d react that way,” his face smooths out and his eyes earnestly seek out Junmyeon’s, “I really am sorry, I didn’t mean to stress you out.”

The tense moment is broken by the return of the owner who blessedly doesn’t mention the shift in the atmosphere. She simply sets the platter of meat down on the table and leaves with a smile. Junmyeon smiles reassuringly at Sehun and begins setting up the grill, but before he could go about setting the meat on the heated surface, Sehun snatches the tongs out of his hand.

“No,” he says when Junmyeon opens his mouth to protest, “you’re taking me out for dinner and I’ve already made a mess of things, at least let me do this. Please.”

Junmyeon relents and the two settle into a calm silence, the only sound being that of the meat sizzling away. Worried that Sehun is still beating himself up about earlier, Junmyeon asks about how he rest of his shift went. The two swap stories as they eat their meal, Sehun particularly enjoying Junmyeon’s anecdote of Jongdae smacking his hands, which were covered in purple paint, right on Junmyeon’s cheeks.

Pleased that the atmosphere surrounding them has lightened and reveling in the satisfaction of being full Junmyeon sinks further into his seat, stretching his legs a bit under the chair. His ankle brushes against Sehun’s which causes the other to look up at him from where he’d been artfully constructing his next wrap.

Mustering his courage, Junmyeon locks his gaze on Sehun’s and lets their ankles stay where they are, lightly pressed against each other. A pleased smile works its way onto the other’s face, his eyes turning into crescents just the way Junmyeon is beginning to love.

The two finish up and Junmyeon walks over to pay near the exit while Sehun stacks their empty dishes.

As he takes the receipt from the owner, he feels an arm loop around his waist. His heart stutters, and he tries not to seem too distracted by the feeling of Sehun’s fingers on his ribcage as he bows to the owner and they head out from the restaurant. They walk like that back to the parking lot of the station where they linger outside Junmyeon’s car.

“So, um,” Sehun utters in the most nervous tone Junmyeon’s ever heard from the man, “I really enjoyed tonight. And I was, well do you think you’d, you know, like to do this again sometime?”

The anxious look in Sehun’s eyes nearly melts Junmyeon’s heart as he smiles and nods, “I’d really, really like that Sehun.”

The man huffs out a sigh of relief and smiles so sweetly down at Junmyeon. He brings up a hand to cup his face and asks, “Can I..” as his eyes move from Junmyeon’s down to his mouth and back up again.

Breathless, Junmyeon gives a slight nod, not even sure if his head moves at all, but it seems to be enough for Sehun who cups his cheeks with both hands and bends down slightly to press his lips gently against his. The kiss is soft yet filled with so much warmth and hope that Junmyeon can’t help but make a happy little noise as he wraps his arms around the other’s middle.

They stay like that, sharing soft chaste kisses against the car, Junmyeon’s heart nearly bursting out of his chest with happiness until the sound of a blaring alarm jolts them apart. They watch the engines pull out of the garage, Junmyeon in shock and Sehun in annoyance. When silence is restored, Sehun clears his throat and says, “I guess I should let you get going. It’s a school night after all.”

Pouting, Junmyeon agrees, and says goodbye raising onto the balls of his feet to leave a kiss on Sehun’s cheek. He promises to text Sehun when he’s safely back home and gets into his car. Pulling out of the parking lot with one last wave at Sehun who was still standing in the same spot, watching him leave, Junmyeon heads home with a grin on his face and a flush on his cheeks.

He arrives home to a text from Sehun saying, _I’m home, can’t wait for the second date!_ To which he squeals and flails on his bed for a minute before typing out a response.

And if he ends up with paint on his face the next day at work because he was too busy reminiscing about the date to notice Jongdae’s gloopy hands approaching him, that’s no one’s business but his own.

\---------------------------------------

Dating Sehun over the next few months makes Junmyeon the happiest he’s ever been.

The “boyfriend discussion” is spurred by Baekhyun noticing Sehun’s picture as Junmyeon’s lockscreen and asking if that’s his boyfriend. To Junmyeon’s horror, he realizes they’ve never actually decided that. What if this is just a casual thing to Sehun?

When he calls Sehun that night, stressed out of his mind at the thought of them being on different pages, Sehun simply laughs and says, “Well I hope we are, ‘cause I asked my mom if I could bring my boyfriend home for dinner sometime soon.”

Junmyeon breathed a sigh of relief before his brain caught up with the rest of what Sehun had said and he yelps, “Dinner with your mom?!”

The meeting of the parents goes almost alarmingly well: Sehun’s parents absolutely _adoring_ Junmyeon – his mom had been a teacher herself! – and Junmyeon’s parents only asking fifty more questions than they should about Sehun’s profession. At the end of that night Junmyeon’s mom pulls him not a hug and whispers into his ear, “That’s a good one you’ve got there, I’m so happy for you.” Junmyeon may have gotten a little misty at that.

Dates consist of walks in the dog park with Byul, Vivi, and Monsieur, dinners after shifts, strolls down the road munching on yummy street food, and a special screening of the new Star Wars movie that Sehun bought tickets for on their 100th day.

The first time Junmyeon invites Sehun back to his apartment he hadn’t expected him to stalk around the place pointing out fire and safety hazards. He has to drag him to the bedroom and kiss him quiet, promising in between kisses to remember to unplug his hairdryer when he leaves in the morning. The night goes pretty much as expected after that.

That’s not to say that dating a firefighter was completely a dream, however. Tensions would rise when Sehun’s shift fell on a weekend and they were denied that time together. They ended up having so many fights over what Junmyeon thought was reckless endangerment when Sehun would tell him about some of his more eventful shifts that Sehun had decided to just not speak of them in detail anymore. While Junmyeon felt guilty about that, he couldn’t exactly deny that his anxiety level decreased the longer he lived in blissful ignorance.

And then there were the nights where Sehun’s shift should have been over _hours_ ago and there’s still no sign of him. No texts. No calls. No knocks on the door. Just an eerie, horrible silence where Junmyeon tries not to think the worst and resists the urge to search for news of tragic fires around Seoul.

Tonight is one of those nights. Sehun’s shift was supposed to end at 2 in the afternoon, and it was pushing 6 PM now. Junmyeon had anxiously checked his phone every half hour at work, but there was still no word from Sehun or any of his coworkers.

When he got home, he tugged on his comfort pajamas, fuzzy ones with little bunnies printed on them, and wrapped himself in a blanket on the couch. Against his better judgement he’d turned on the TV and the first thing he saw is a reporter standing behind a police line backlit by what looks like an old office building up in flames. Unable to tear his eyes away he’s watched with a growing sense of dread as more and more engines pull into the area. He prays and prays that Sehun is somewhere, anywhere, else.

At this point they’ve apparently gotten everyone possible out of the building and are just letting the fire run its course. Junmyeon swallows thickly, feeling like a stone is lodged in his throat as he blinks through tears to ensure that his phone is at the highest volume. He can’t afford to miss that notification. It should come any minute now, he reasons to himself, any minute.

He numbly watches as the fire wears itself out on the screen, the news hour eventually moving on to other things. Still no text.

He gets up and makes some tea, hoping to find even a small comfort. Still no text.

Byul wiggles her way onto his lap and he strokes her head absentmindedly. All he can think of is Sehun. And there’s still no text.

Junmyeon looks at the clock on the wall and tears collect in his eyes. He’s never been this late before.

A sharp knock on the door startles Junmyeon, his lap jostling Byul enough that she hops back down onto the floor. On shaky legs, he gets up and walks toward the door each step filling him with more and more anxiety. Does he dare to hope?

He opens the door, and he’s there. He’s _there._ His eyes are rimmed red, his face is grey with ash and his clothes are rumpled and a bit singed in places but he’s here.

Junmyeon reaches a tentative hand out to touch his face and Sehun all but falls into Junmyeon’s embrace, horrible, wracking sobs causing his body to shudder and quake. And suddenly, all of the anxiety, the fear, the dread that Junmyeon had been feeling becomes a distant memory because Sehun, his Sehun, is here and is hurting.

He shuffles them over to the couch, never letting go of his hold around Sehun’s waist, Sehun’s arms still locked in a vice grip around his shoulders. They sit and his boyfriend’s face moves to the crook of his neck, the sounds he makes becoming more pained whimpers than harsh sobs. He holds back his own tears as he strokes Sehun’s quivering back, how can he help? How could he possibly ease this pain?

Eventually Sehun’s breathing evens out and he removes his face from where it was hidden. He places his hands on either side of Junmyeon’s face and then two sets of pained eyes are connected for the second time that evening.

“I love you,” he rasps out, “Junmyeon, I love you.”

And suddenly it hits him. All this time. This entire time that he’d been taking for granted they hadn’t said that to one another. The thought that Sehun could have been gone without him being about to tell him he loved him had Junmyeon almost frantically rubbing the tears off Sehun’s face, his fingers becoming coated in grey slush, but he didn’t care. Couldn’t care. Sehun has to know.

“Sehunnie, oh my Sehun,” he says, tears building in his eyes, “I love you so much.”

His lover’s face crumples in on itself as more tears stream down his face but Junmyeon is there to kiss them away, ignoring the bitter taste of salty ash. Sehun’s hands clutch desperately to his wrists as he struggles to stop the steady flow of his tears.

It takes a few minutes of tender words and even more tender touches for Sehun’s cries to turn into sniffles and then to steady breathing. Junmyeon brushes his hair out of his eyes and asks, “Should we go get you clean and order some food? Then we can snuggle a bit? Yeah?”

The two head to his bathroom and he’s suddenly so thankful for having a bathtub since he doubts Sehun could stand for very long on his own. Sehun stands under the showerhead for a minute to get the worst of the ash and grime to come off while Junmyeon fills the tub with warm water. Once Sehun is fully seated, Junmyeon gets to work on lathering his hair with shampoo while the other works on scrubbing his skin.

Once the bath’s over, Junmyeon rushes to get some of Sehun’s pajamas that he’d left behind on one of his many visits, dropping Sehun’s dirty clothes into the washer on the way. The other has dried off by the time he returns to the bathroom, so he helps him get dressed, minding the aches and pains that are becoming more apparent with time. He quickly washes off his own neck and face and then they head back out to the living room.

Sehun slumps onto the couch and is quickly joined by Byul who jumps up onto his lap and begins to lick at his chin. This causes Sehun to smile a bit and the worry that had been squeezing Junmyeon’s heart loosens a bit. He orders Chinese from a place down the street and then sits down next to Sehun who immediately rests his head on his shoulder.

He brings a hand up to stroke his hair and softly asks, “do you want to talk about it?”

Sehun shakes his head and in a heartbreakingly small voice he replies, “no, not really. Could we talk about something else? Anything?”

And so Junmyeon twists his head to press a kiss in Sehun’s damp hair and begins talking about his day. How he woke up 10 minutes late and so he didn’t get his morning coffee.

“Oh no.”

“Oh no indeed.”

How when he got to work, he was nearly knocked to the ground by Baekhyun who was absolutely ecstatic that he was getting a puppy.

“What kind of puppy?”

“A corgi”

“That’s nice. Corgis are cute.”

How when naptime came around, Kyungsoo couldn’t fall asleep so Junmyeon sat him on his lap in the corner and sang softly to him until he could.

“That sounds nice. You’re so great with kids.”

“Thank you Sehunnie, I love them a lot.”

“They love you, too. I could tell when we visited your school.”

How when it was time for the kids to get picked up, Jongdae had demanded to kiss him on the cheek so Junmyeon had crouched down and the kid essentially just pressed his mouth on the side of his face.

“Which cheek?”

“Why do you want to know?”

“So I can kiss it too.”

The food arrives shortly after this and the two eat in relative silence, making small comments about the quality and flavor. Instead of returning to the couch after he disposes of the to-go containers, Junmyeon holds his hand out and says, “Let’s go get some sleep.”

Teeth brushed and faces cleaned, they tumble into the bed together. They lay on their sides facing one another, Sehun’s nose against the underside of his Adam’s apple and his arm slung over Junmyeon’s waist and one of his legs nudged in between the other’s. Sehun takes a shaky inhale and he feels more than hears him say, “Thank you.”

“Of course, Sehun. I would do anything for you,” as he kisses his forehead, “you mean the world to me, and I’m just so grateful that you’re okay. I love you so, so much.”

“I love you, too,” Sehun mumbles as he finally drifts off to sleep.

The next morning Junmyeon wakes to an empty bed but the smell of breakfast cooking puts a smile on his face. He rolls out of bed and pads into the kitchen where Sehun softly humming while flipping pancakes on the stove. He takes a moment to enjoy the scene before him: Sehun wearing the apron his students had gifted him, their little handprints dotting the fabric in different colors, Byul sitting at his feet hoping to glean a scrap of food that Sehun has been known to give.

It's perfect. It’s what Junmyeon has always wanted, always envisioned for himself. He walks up behind Sehun, resting his forehead at the top of the taller’s spine and wrapping his arms around his waist. They stay like that until all the batter’s been used, and they move to sit at the table.

Junmyeon watches as Sehun sneaks Byul a piece of pancake before he drenches his plate of them in syrup, and suddenly, he knows. He wants this. Every morning, he wants to see this, to feel this.

“Sehunnie,” he starts. And Sehun, his sweet Sehun looks up guiltily at says, “I know, I know I’m not supposed to feed her from the table, but how can you resist that face? She’s just so-“

“Sehunnie,” he tries again with a chuckle, “I’m not upset about that, I just wanted to ask you something.”

Guilt shifts to curiosity as Sehun says, “Oh, okay sure, what’s up?”

Rubbing his sweaty palms on his thighs, he cautiously meets Sehun’s eyes, “Well, you know, I was thinking that I really like it when you’re here, and you come over all the time when you’re not on shift, and I’m pretty sure half of your closet is here at this point, and this place allows pets so Vivi and Monsieur wouldn’t have to stay at your parents’, and- “

“Junmyeon, are you asking me to move in?” As he’d been talking his gaze had moved elsewhere, embarrassed and anxious that he’s moving a bit too fast especially after the night Sehun had had. But now, he looks across the table at the man who entered and changed his life so much for the better and is greeted by a teary smile.

A nervous smile grows on his face as he answers, “Yeah, Sehun. I’m asking you to move in with me.”

His boyfriend launches himself out of his chair, gripping Junmyeon’s face, smushing his cheeks together as he places kisses on every square inch of his face. He walks around the table as he does this and plops himself down in Junmyeon’s lap curling his arms around Junmyeon’s neck.

Junmyeon giggles and says, “I take that as a yes then?”

“Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes!” Sehun says between kisses. “My lease is up in two months so we can take it slow, but yes, Junmyeon I’d love to move in with you.”

Sehun stays in his lap as they finish breakfast, and Junmyeon has to periodically poke little syrup drenched pieces of pancake into Sehun’s mouth when he goes on too long about where he’ll put his things in the living room, and how he’s so excited to have Vivi and Monsieur with them, how they’ll be like a little family.

And while Junmyeon can’t really feel his feet anymore, he can’t find it within himself to care when he has the man he loves happy in his arms. He kisses a pancake filled cheek and whispers, “I love you Sehunnie.”

Sehun swallows and nuzzles into his neck and whispers back, “I love you too my sleeping beauty.”

**Author's Note:**

> hello!! thanks so much for reading! i hope you enjoyed :)  
> a big thank you to the mods for running this fest! i had so much fun writing this  
> to the prompter: i hope this fulfilled you request for fluffiness!!  
> kudos and comments appreciated!  
> stay safe, stay healthy, stay happy!!


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